07/24/2017

Review: Red Rising(Red Rising #1) by Pierce Brown

"I live for the dream that my children will be born free," she says. "That they will be what they like. That they will own the land their father gave them."

"I live for you," I say sadly.

Eo kisses my cheek. "Then you must live for more."

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations.

Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children.

But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.

Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so. Hardcover 382 pagesPublished January 28th 2014 by Del Rey (Random House)Source: Purchased

Four stars: A gut wrenching, action packed, blood soaked dystopian that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Darrow is used to heat and toil. He is a Helldiver after all. As a Helldiver, he plunges deep into the depths of Mars to search out life saving gases to send back to Earth in order to help with colonization. It is a hard life, full of sacrifice and oppression. Yet, he has Eo, his beautiful young wife. Then in an instant, life as Darrow knows it is snatched away. He finds himself amongst a band of rebels. Darrow is given a tough choice. He can undergo surgery and become a Gold, one of the ruling caste, in hopes of infiltrating their ranks and starting and uprising. It is a dangerous task. Darrow has no idea just how deadly his quest will be. When he finds himself thrust into a brutal, real life arena, to battle it out amongst his peers, he knows he must survive and conquer if he has any hope of leading a rebellion. Can the Reds rise?

What I Liked:

Red Rising is a book that has long been on my To Read List. Once I finally took the plunge, I found myself thrust into a thrilling dystopian world where the fittest battle to survive. This is a dystopian that is packed full of danger, violence and sacrifice. If you want an edge of your seat thrilling dystopian, this is one to reach for.

The book centers around Darrow. He is born a lowly Red, a subservient, whose purpose is to slave away and produce for the upper classes. The Reds are oppressed and kept ignorant of what goes on at the surface of Mars. Once Darrow learns the truth, he makes some daring decisions. Darrow is easy to like since he is a humble young man who has lost almost everything he holds dear. He is surrounded by pampered and spoiled Golds, an underdog if you will. As the book progresses, Darrow shows great courage and fortitude as well as altruistic behavior. He becomes a noble leader, after he gets over his anger and vengeance. Once he hits his stride, he is an unstoppable force, and you can't help but root for him.

The cast of secondary characters is eclectic and entertaining. I was surprised to find myself attached to and cheering for some of the Golds I thought I would hate. Mustang was one of my favorites. She is fierce, smart and loyal. I also loved Pax, the big, strong brute with a kind heart. Servo was another favorite even though he was the most strange one of the bunch. He is the wild boy, a wolf in disguise. Add in a few scary villains, and you have a highly entertaining caste.

The world building was well done, even if I felt like it borrowed heavily from other popular books. I was surprised at how the world changed from the oppressive underground world of the Reds, to the glamorous and frivolous world of the Golds before plunging into the terrifying and brutal arena. It was an interesting mash up of worlds.

The story is action packed and full of terrifying encounters. It is at times, violent, bloody and brutal, not for the faint of heart. If you love a book packed full of danger, this is one for you.

The ending is a bit of a mix, while it draws to a close one portion of the story line, it does end on a cliffhanger as it sets up the next book, leaving extremely anxious to start the next book.

And The Not So Much:

This is not a book for younger readers as it is packed full of violence. There are many fight to the death scenes that are quite disturbing. There are also several instances of rape. None of the rape scenes are ever played out or described, they are only mentioned after they have happened, but still it is a reoccurring issue in the book. I was not a fan of all the rape.

Even though I liked the world building, I felt like it borrowed heavily from other books. It ends up being a bit like a Hunger Games even though the characters aren't supposed to die. I was often wondering where all those medbots were.

I was disappointed that one of the big twists was not recounted or played out. I was most curious to know how Mustang achieved what she did in that final scene.

Red Rising is an entertaining, exciting and violent dystopian. If you like deadly action, exciting world building and a sympathetic main character, you need to read this. Keep in mind that it is rather violent read with many battle scenes and instances of rape. I enjoyed the book, and I am up for the next one, once I catch my breath.

I purchased a copy of this book. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.

Comments

"I live for the dream that my children will be born free," she says. "That they will be what they like. That they will own the land their father gave them."

"I live for you," I say sadly.

Eo kisses my cheek. "Then you must live for more."

Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations.

Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children.

But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity already reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet. Darrow—and Reds like him—are nothing more than slaves to a decadent ruling class.

Inspired by a longing for justice, and driven by the memory of lost love, Darrow sacrifices everything to infiltrate the legendary Institute, a proving ground for the dominant Gold caste, where the next generation of humanity's overlords struggle for power. He will be forced to compete for his life and the very future of civilization against the best and most brutal of Society's ruling class. There, he will stop at nothing to bring down his enemies... even if it means he has to become one of them to do so. Hardcover 382 pagesPublished January 28th 2014 by Del Rey (Random House)Source: Purchased

Four stars: A gut wrenching, action packed, blood soaked dystopian that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Darrow is used to heat and toil. He is a Helldiver after all. As a Helldiver, he plunges deep into the depths of Mars to search out life saving gases to send back to Earth in order to help with colonization. It is a hard life, full of sacrifice and oppression. Yet, he has Eo, his beautiful young wife. Then in an instant, life as Darrow knows it is snatched away. He finds himself amongst a band of rebels. Darrow is given a tough choice. He can undergo surgery and become a Gold, one of the ruling caste, in hopes of infiltrating their ranks and starting and uprising. It is a dangerous task. Darrow has no idea just how deadly his quest will be. When he finds himself thrust into a brutal, real life arena, to battle it out amongst his peers, he knows he must survive and conquer if he has any hope of leading a rebellion. Can the Reds rise?

What I Liked:

Red Rising is a book that has long been on my To Read List. Once I finally took the plunge, I found myself thrust into a thrilling dystopian world where the fittest battle to survive. This is a dystopian that is packed full of danger, violence and sacrifice. If you want an edge of your seat thrilling dystopian, this is one to reach for.

The book centers around Darrow. He is born a lowly Red, a subservient, whose purpose is to slave away and produce for the upper classes. The Reds are oppressed and kept ignorant of what goes on at the surface of Mars. Once Darrow learns the truth, he makes some daring decisions. Darrow is easy to like since he is a humble young man who has lost almost everything he holds dear. He is surrounded by pampered and spoiled Golds, an underdog if you will. As the book progresses, Darrow shows great courage and fortitude as well as altruistic behavior. He becomes a noble leader, after he gets over his anger and vengeance. Once he hits his stride, he is an unstoppable force, and you can't help but root for him.

The cast of secondary characters is eclectic and entertaining. I was surprised to find myself attached to and cheering for some of the Golds I thought I would hate. Mustang was one of my favorites. She is fierce, smart and loyal. I also loved Pax, the big, strong brute with a kind heart. Servo was another favorite even though he was the most strange one of the bunch. He is the wild boy, a wolf in disguise. Add in a few scary villains, and you have a highly entertaining caste.

The world building was well done, even if I felt like it borrowed heavily from other popular books. I was surprised at how the world changed from the oppressive underground world of the Reds, to the glamorous and frivolous world of the Golds before plunging into the terrifying and brutal arena. It was an interesting mash up of worlds.

The story is action packed and full of terrifying encounters. It is at times, violent, bloody and brutal, not for the faint of heart. If you love a book packed full of danger, this is one for you.

The ending is a bit of a mix, while it draws to a close one portion of the story line, it does end on a cliffhanger as it sets up the next book, leaving extremely anxious to start the next book.

And The Not So Much:

This is not a book for younger readers as it is packed full of violence. There are many fight to the death scenes that are quite disturbing. There are also several instances of rape. None of the rape scenes are ever played out or described, they are only mentioned after they have happened, but still it is a reoccurring issue in the book. I was not a fan of all the rape.

Even though I liked the world building, I felt like it borrowed heavily from other books. It ends up being a bit like a Hunger Games even though the characters aren't supposed to die. I was often wondering where all those medbots were.

I was disappointed that one of the big twists was not recounted or played out. I was most curious to know how Mustang achieved what she did in that final scene.

Red Rising is an entertaining, exciting and violent dystopian. If you like deadly action, exciting world building and a sympathetic main character, you need to read this. Keep in mind that it is rather violent read with many battle scenes and instances of rape. I enjoyed the book, and I am up for the next one, once I catch my breath.

I purchased a copy of this book. All opinions are my own, and I was not compensated for this review.